


He is a Stark

by Severa



Category: Captain America (Movies), Iron Man (Movies), The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Game of Thrones Puns, Gen, Mild Captain America 2 Spoilers, Oneshot
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-04-11
Updated: 2014-04-11
Packaged: 2018-01-18 23:03:35
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 769
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1446073
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Severa/pseuds/Severa
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Tony has a habit of making terrible puns.</p>
            </blockquote>





	He is a Stark

Steve Rogers owed a lot to Howard Stark. From the serum to the shield to the war, Howard had always been at Steve's side. He was the self-proclaimed brains behind the brawn (though Peggy fit that bill better, Steve thought). He was the mentor. A sounding-board. A friend. 

It was hard to pay a debt to a dead man, Steve knew, and even harder still with the constant reminders scattered around his home. The name Stark was emblazoned everywhere he looked, matched with a few old portraits of Howard that gathered dust on the walls. The shield was ever-present, along with the memory of that day he'd first picked the disk up. Steve was grateful for it all, and so was battle-ready Captain America. He just hadn't expected to find himself grateful for something else Howard had left behind.

That something was Tony Stark.

After the HYDRA and SHIELD debacle in D.C., everyone had taken off to New York. Natasha was meeting Clint there at the airport, Maria was applying for a job at Stark Industries, Sam wanted to sight-see, and Steve… Steve just needed to get away. From the destruction, the broken helicarriers, the questioning public, the vulture-like politicians — all of it. He ran from everything that reminded him of that week from hell.

Avengers Tower had been his sanctuary.

It seemed that the entire team was in need of the Tower’s safety, Steve quickly realized. Tony and Pepper were staying there because the Malibu Mansion had been demolished, Bruce appreciated the lab and the overall anti-Hulkness of his floor, and Thor came and went with sad, brooding eyes. . 

Since the Chitauri invasion, it was evident that life had not been easy for any of them.

But now Steve could forget all that. He could instead remember Howard and appreciate Tony for the brilliant genius he was, because the snark-loving man had gone above and beyond the call of duty to help a friend.

When the Winter Soldier had arrived at Avenger’s Tower, Captain America had been rendered completely speechless.

(Granted, Tony’s execution hadn’t been perfect. Stealing Bucky away into the lab to poke at his mechanical arm had been an entirely selfish curiosity; calling Steve down to “look at something cool” had been a second thought.)

Today, there was an Avenger’s meeting concerning that act of kindness. The matter of subject was on whether or not Bucky should be allowed into the team. Though there were minor hesitations, the conversation went well. The only one who had little to say on the matter was Thor — he had decreed that if the solider had been reformed and was a great warrior, he would also be a great asset. Tony had shot back that Thor would let Loki join if he convinced him that he’d “reformed;” he immediately regretted his words, but Thor had just given him a little, sad smile and said, “Aye.”

The decision was made within the hour. Surprisingly, Tony beat Steve to the punch when it came to fetching Bucky, apparently very happy to be the bearer of good news. Natasha and Clint, less convinced with his enthusiasm, shared skeptical glances.

Approximately three minutes later, Tony returned. His expression was grim and all his usual humor had left him, casting an unsettling silence through the room. But Bruce gave a sigh and rolled his eyes despite this, sensing a performance. Tony’s oddly hardened expression remained. He leveled a very serious look upon his teammates and folded his hands.

"Winter is coming." 

Despite all the foreboding in Tony’s tone, Bruce groaned, Natasha rolled her eyes, and Clint snorted. Thor and Steve shared perplexed looks, not understanding the pop culture references, but Clint filled their silence.

"You think you’re so funny, don’t you, Tony?"

Tony Stark’s facade cracked as he smirked.

"C’mon, I’m a  _Stark_.”

Bucky had stepped through the door, not at ease with the current state of the room. The mix of humor and pun-annoyance confused him, but Steve gave him a relaxing smile. One that said  _this is normal,_ and  _you’ll get used to it._

Though Steve now understood that whatever pun had been made was an apparent damnable offense, his appreciation for Tony did not wane.

After Clint sat him and Bucky down to binge-watch Game of Thrones one weekend, he still appreciated Iron Man. But the fact that Tony now felt the need to announce that winter was coming any time Bucky walked in a room… well, Steve remembered why he and Tony didn’t get along so well sometimes.

Still, bad puns and all, Captain America was grateful for Iron Man.

**Author's Note:**

> A little mini-fic I posted on my [tumblr](http://wicked-midnight.tumblr.com/) the other day. Couldn't help but share it here.
> 
> This is what a weekend of Cap 2 and Game of Thrones gets you, folks.


End file.
